Shifting Stars
by MoiraCPercy
Summary: Bethyl Reunion Fic. Slight AU. Beth's father used to tell her to look to the stars and she'll find what she's looking for. Turns out he was right. "As long as the stars and universe keep shifting, keep making things right. Then everything will be good."


**AN: I didn't really plan this story. It just sorta happened while I was listening to the beautiful song, _Saturn_ by Sleeping at Last (which I recommend you all listen to! It's amazing and beautiful). **

**Things you should know- This is a Bethyl fic, and it's sort of an AU reunion story set after Beth was kidnapped and escapes and with Daryl still on his own, doing his own thing. So it doesn't really follow the current episodes so far. But anyway, I hope you all like it!**

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><p>I follow the stars, watching their path through the clouds. It's hard to see at times, but when I finally get a good view through the thick leaves above me, I can't help but stop and wonder how I would be feeling now if I was still back at the farm. Back to looking out my window and not paying much attention to anything. Would I be happy? Bored? Would I feel anything? Anything like the wonder and sadness I feel now? Would I have been able to appreciate the beauty of life before?<p>

I don't think I would've.

But as I follow the bright lights in the sky, I can't help but feel some blind feeling of desperation in me. I need them now. I need them more than ever to help me. Help me find the people I've lost. The names that have become too painful to even think about. I'm stronger now, but for how long can I stay that way when I'm on my own? When I could be the last person walking this earth. I need the stars. I need the light. I need the guidance.

_Don't let me wonder. _

Through the trees, I wind my way around the forest, praying. Hoping. They have to be out there. Someone. Someone good. Someone who still knows what it means to love. To feel happiness. To carry that light within them. I know they have to be out there. They just have to be. And I'll find them. And I'll greet them like an old friend. And I'll carry them around like a precious token, and teach them all I know, and watch them spread happiness and joy everywhere they go. And watch as the world is good again.

I'm gonna be the one to change the world. And I'm gonna be the one that laughs firsts, and the one the dances throughout the night like an idiot. And I'm gonna be the first one that falls to my knees and weeps. I'll weep for the dead. I'll weep for the undead. I'll weep for the people and loved ones I lost. And the ones I didn't. And I'll pray that they found happiness where they went. That they're lookin down on me now, and laughing and weeping with me. And I won't care. And everything will be right.

I look at the starts again, my heart aching yet soaring. I can feel something now. Something is about to change, the air is lighter. The night is alive with the sound of birds and crickets. There's no pain or suffering to be heard. Not one groan or growl. All is peaceful. How long it will stay that way is the true mystery. But I bet I could guess that it will be forever. I can feel the shift, the gentle movement of the universe aligning itself again. I can feel it in the wind, the ground, in the sky. It's all there.

Just stay a little longer.

I hurry my steps. It's like I can hear the voices of everyone who was killed calling out to me, urging me on. It's close. I know it. I smile, ignoring the fact that I must look insane. Who isn't insane anymore, anyway? My feet stir up the leaves on the ground, my eyes glancing to the sky as I run, making sure the stars are still as bright as ever. My heart races, my hair blowing in my face as the wind rushes past.

It's like I can hear the squirrels again. Like I can feel the blood in my veins for the time in years. I don't know why. I don't understand. But I don't question it. This is too surreal to matter. So I don't question, but run. I run as fast as I can, not caring who might hear or see me. Who might be following me at this very moment. Or who might not be. Or how empty and dark it must be from where I started.

I wonder if the dead can hear me?

The trees fly by, and I watch them disappear from the corner of my eye. And suddenly I'm standing in a clearing. There's a cabin in front of me, old and worn down. I stand there, breathing deeply as I try to catch my breath, looking. The moonlight shines a soft white glow around the small house, as for once the trees cast shadows that aren't frightening, but normal. Calm. And as I stare at the cabin, I feel a jolt hit my stomach as I notice the smoke rising from the chimney, and I know. I know this is the first step of that shift.

I step forward, noticing the sharp chill of the air for the first time. My pulse beats quickly, excitement building up within me. The smoke continues to billow, gentle wisps in the breeze. There's a soft, warm glow from the windows. I could laugh. With each step, my breath becomes shallower, my patience teetering. How can this be real? How can this happen? With one last glance upwards, I close my eyes and I pray the hardest I've ever prayed in my life.

_Please, God, please let this be real. Please let this be good. Please let this be right. Please let this be happy. _

As my eyes slowly open, they lock on the figure in front of me, standing in the doorway of the moonlit cabin. My legs stagger underneath me, my breath catching as a lump forms in my throat. How... how is he here? How is he alive? How does he still look the same, yet so different? I want to call out his name, I want to run to him, I want to do _something_, but my mind is unwilling.

_Oh, God, please do not make this a joke. _

Just like that, I feel the sob bursting from my lips, the sheer relief, fear, happiness, love, overwhelming me. My eyes lock with his, that same look of amazement and disbelief etched on his features, in his eyes. He takes an unsteady step forward, the axe I hadn't noticed in his hands falling to the ground.

"Beth?" His voice is quiet, rough.

"Daryl." I choke.

At the sound of his name something snaps, and he's rushing to me so quickly that I barely have time to react before he's crushing me to him. I hear his sobs in my ear, his breath warm against my cheek. His arms are like tethers as they press me against him, rocking me back and forth where we stand. My own tears slide down my face, my arms limp at my side as I stare at the cabin over his shoulder, process what's happening, the same questions playing in my mind over and over again. How? _How? _

Then it clicks. It clicks so suddenly that I'm weeping and crying and sobbing so hard that I can barely breath. My arms move around his shoulder as I bury my face into the crook of his neck. His arms only tighten in response, his breath shuddering with every sob of his own. I hold him as close as possible, desperate to feel every inch of him, my hands burying into his long hair, testing, praying. He's here. My, _God_, he's here. He's alive. He's whole. He's breathing.

My knees give way, and we fall to the ground in a heap. I'm practically on his lap as he continues to rock us back and forth, whispering my name over and over like a prayer. My throat tightens, and I want nothing more than to stay like this forever. To feel his arms around me until I die. To hear the sweet, rough sound of his voice until the end of days. It's too perfect. Too amazing. Too unreal. But I know it's nothing but real, so I keep him close to me, crying into his shoulder, eyes squeezed shut as I simply listen to his voice. Feel his hands.

"You're here. You're here." I chant through my tears. His arms tighten impossibly. I can feel every finger. Every tickly of hair. Every part of him against me. I want to melt.

I feel the ghost of his lips as they brush against my temple, the warmth that spreads across my face at the contact. He moves me so that my face is cupped inbetween his hands, his face inches from mine. His eyes are glistening with tears, hidden behind his shaggy hair, boring into mine with such intensity that I nearly shiver. My stomach flips suddenly.

"You're here."

His voice is a broken whisper. "I'm here. I'm not leavin'. No way in hell."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Wasn't your fault."

"Please. _Please_ don't leave."

Fresh tears springs to his eyes, some sort of determination taking over. He studies me for a moment, and the look in his eyes makes me want to cry even harder. Carefully, his eyes never leaving mine, he pulls me closer. At the touch of his soft lips against mine, my eyes flutter shut, my entire body erupting in warmth. How is it possible to feel so much peace and love in a single action? How rare and beautiful this moment is in the world like we have now. But I know this is it. The shift, the change. I'm not alone. I made it. The universe can make it. Life can make it. Love can make it.

I tighten my arms around his neck, relishing in the feel of his lips against mine, knowing the stars are bright and full. The pads of his fingers are smooth against my cheeks, caressing me with a gentleness so rare from his usual self that it sends warmth to the pit of my stomach. Electricity feels like it sparks around us, and I bury my hands in his hair once again. Our tears mingle together.

When he pulls away, his cheeks are flushed, his eyes still closed as his forhead lolls against mine. I smile slightly, raising my own hand to rest against his cheek. It's softer than I thought it would be. We sit like that for some time, resting against each other. Tired. Peaceful. My heart feels about ready to burst. But I like the feeling. As long as it lasts. As long as this happiness continues. As long as the stars and the universe keep shifting. Keep making things right. The. Everything will be good. Everything will be right.

Just one step at a time.

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><p><strong>Please let me know it you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading!<strong>


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